BlackBook Exclusive: Autumn Cocktail Recipes from the Newly Revamped DIEGO at the PUBLIC Hotel

As the leaves change, the drink menus change… that’s what they say right? Ok, no one says that; but it’s out with the old and in with the new for DIEGO, PUBLIC Hotel New York’s sophisticated and newly revamped cocktail bar.

Those in the know definitely know that the PUBLIC is one of the most swanky and buzz-worthy hotspots below 14th Street. What they might not know? The LES hotel just got a little more exciting: its top floor lounge, with its live jazz and worldly cocktails, has a new, reimagined cocktail selection created by Ivy Mix.

Crowned American Bartender of the Year at the 2015 Tales of The Cocktail, Mix drew inspiration from namesake Mexican artist Diego Rivera (husband of Frida Kahlo). As Rivera and Kahlo spent the peak of their careers trotting the globe, traveling to cities with some of the most sought after spirits, the new and very international drinks menu at DIEGO takes you on something of an epicurean world tour, via the flavors of Mexico City, Rome, Paris, Madrid and beyond.

We especially loved the mezcal-spiked Desert Wind, for example. With its delectable flavors of añejo tequila and honey, you might just imagine that your post-night-out stroll through Tompkins Square seems more like a saunter through Mexico City’s Chapultepec Park.

We asked Ms. Mix to share with us the secrets behind a couple of her most popular new cocktail creations.

Desert Wind (pictured above)

0.5 oz Mezcal

1.5 oz Añejo Tequila

0.25 oz Honey Syrup

0.25 oz Palo Santo Syrup

Dash of Angostura Bitters

Glassware: Old Fashioned

Garnish: Orange Twist

Method:Add all ingredients into ice-filled mixing glass. Stir until well chilled. Strain over ice into Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with orange twist.

Red Vespa

1 oz Contratto

0.5 oz Sweet Vermouth

0.5 oz Dry Vermouth

Can of Tecate

Glassware: Highball

Garnish: Orange Wheel

Method:Add Contratto, sweet vermouth and dry vermouth to an ice-filled highball glass. Top with Tecate. Garnish with orange wheel.